The heat is on for marketers to incorporate influencers into their marketing strategy. The problem is, the sheer amount of bad advice about influencer marketing can make it difficult to separate the good from the bad.

While the pursuit for influencer marketing success doesn’t appear to be slowing down, many marketers are unsure which direction to go. In fact, the new Influence 2.0 report that we developed in partnership with Altimeter Group and Traackr, 48% of marketers are still experimenting with incorporating influencers into their marketing.

Explore the use of marketplaces. Some situations may require paying influencers to participate. Consider influencer marketplaces like TapInfluence or Fango for augmenting with paid influencers.

Audience appeal. Success in co-creating content with influencers is that they are actually influential to your target audience.

Utilize a mix of influencer types. Instead of just focusing on the ever popular brandividual, include internal experts, micro-influencers, niche experts prospects and customers in your influencer marketing mix.

How Can You Create Value for Influencers?

Create a great experience. To stand out in a sea of requests, aim to create a great experience for every influencer you work with.

Be empathetic to influencer’s busy schedules. Chances are, most experts you want to work with have a full-time job, and receive co-create requests constantly. Be understanding a provide adequate turn-around times.

Personalize your approach. If you don’t take the time to get to know insights about your influencers, don’t expect them to take the time to respond.

Be transparent. It’s essential that you are always up-front and honest with the influencers you collaborate with. Don’t ever pull a bait-and-switch.

Increase exposure. Individual influencers will have different objectives but increased exposure for an expert is a win-win situation for everyone.

What Are Some Ways to Inspire Co-Creation & Amplification?

Warm up the relationship. Your chances of success with an influencer greatly improve if you send out signals of credibility to them prior to asking them to co-create.

Make it easy for influencers to participate. Clearly outline exactly what you’re looking for in your outreach and give experts a couple options for collaboration.

Repurpose influencer contributions. Influencer contributions are pure gold. Instead of using them just once, find ways to repurpose and reuse the content they create with your brand.

Provide pre-written social messages. Again, influencers are busy people. Take a few moments to pre-write social messages that influencers can easily copy, paste, edit and publish into their social queues.

Share content success with influencers. A coordinated promotion effort will often lead to increased shareability of a piece of content. By alerting influencers of the content performance you can help inspire additional amplification.

What Makes for a Good Influencer & Brand Relationship?

Keep in touch. Many brands will only communicate with influencers when they need their help. Make a point to nurture the relationship by reaching out on a consistent basis.

Build an influencer community. A mature influencer marketing program will likely focus on a core set of influencers that are aware they are part of a community and have developed loyalty to the brand.

Build brand advocates. Ultimately, you want to create such a great experience for influencers that they are inspired to advocate on behalf of your brand.

Be thoughtful. While many experts will not require payment for co-creation (if the relationship is solid), consider sending small, thoughtful gifts to show your appreciation.

Get feedback from influencers. Want to know if influencers enjoy co-creating content with your brand? Ask them what is working and what some opportunities for improving the experience might be.

Keep This List Close

It doesn’t matter if you’re just exploring influencer marketing or have seen some success already, these 20 tips should be top of mind for any influencer program, large or small. What have you found to be one of the most critical elements for influencer co-creation success for your brand?

Ashley Zeckman is the Director of Agency Marketing for TopRank Marketing. In addition to finding innovative ways to showcase the exceptional work of her team, she is also responsible for creating digital marketing programs that drive customer acquisition and growth for the agency. Her background includes expertise in everything from content marketing strategy to branding, account management and social media.

Outside of her role at TopRank Online Marketing, Ashley prides herself on being a great home chef, painter, prankster and dog mom.